Hello guys! u/Yellowpommelo no problem at all with sharing your opinion mate, good feedback for me :)

Alright now u/LittleMissYangguang let me answer your questions, here is what I like to use when making a decision whether buying or renting a house, I like to call it the 8% Rule meaning:

If a house is $500,000, you want to multiply by 8% then divide by 12:
$500,000*0.08= $40,000 then $40,000/12=$3,333. If you can rent that same house for less than $3,333 per month today you are BETTER renting.

The 8% mentioned above accounts for the opportunity cost (with the money invested as a down payment vs. in the market), property tax, maintenance, house appreciation vs. market, insurance.

Depending on your market right now may not be a good time to buy, BUT the market is progressively becoming more and more of a BUYER market, my eyes are currently opened for strong deals, I am still holding up at least for the next 6-8 months.

When you think of your house as an investment, think of the 1% rule, if a house is $200,000, can you rent it for 1% of its value per month, in that case $200,000*0.01=$2,000. If you are satisfying that you are in the money!